Maxime de la Rocheterie on Marie-Antoinette

"She was not a guilty woman, neither was she a saint; she was an upright, charming woman, a little frivolous, somewhat impulsive, but always pure; she was a queen, at times ardent in her fancies for her favourites and thoughtless in her policy, but proud and full of energy; a thorough woman in her winsome ways and tenderness of heart, until she became a martyr."

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

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Unless otherwise noted, any books I review on this blog I have either purchased or borrowed from the library, and I do not receive any compensation (monetary or in-kind) for the reviews.

Friday, November 13, 2015

Some saints were as prone to worry and anxiety as the rest of us are.
But, by placing their trust in the Lord’s presence and care, they were
able to overcome their fears. Some of these fears were relatively minor
ones, as faced by Bl. Helen of Udine, who, during a period of distress,
was terrified even of loud noises.

Others were serious fears, as faced by St. Augustine of Canterbury,
the abbot of a monastery in Rome. In the year 596, he was chosen by Pope
St. Gregory the Great to lead a group of forty monks on a missionary
journey to England. (There were some scattered Christian communities
there, but the island as a whole was pagan and uncivilized.) Augustine
and his companions set out, but on reaching France, they were frightened
by stories of the dangerous waters of the English Channel and the
fierce temperament of the Anglo- Saxon tribes. Leaving his companions
there, Augustine hurried back to confer with the Pope. Gregory
encouraged the worried missionary and sent him back on his way, after
telling him, “He who would climb a lofty height must go by steps, not by
leaps.” Augustine returned to the other missionaries; they crossed over
into England and there experienced great success in spreading the
Gospel.

It’s said that the words “Be not afraid” appear in Scripture 366
times — one for each day of the year (leap years included). Certainly we
need this sort of ongoing reminder and encouragement; life can be
difficult and is often filled with anxieties, great and small. Jesus
told St. Martha that, unlike her sister Mary, she was “anxious and
troubled about many things.” (Luke 10:41) Martha took this correction to
heart and learned to trust in the Lord — so much so that later, even as
she grieved the death of her brother Lazarus, she was able to
acknowledge Jesus as the Resurrection and the life (John 11:24-27).

Martha’s sister St. Mary Magdalene likewise acknowledged Christ’s
power on this occasion; she was one of the few followers of Christ who,
on Good Friday, dared to proclaim her loyalty to Him publicly by
standing beneath His Cross (John 19:25), and for her courage and
devotion she was rewarded by being the first witness of the Resurrection
(John 20:11-18). (Read more.)

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